The present invention is directed to a lamp with plural light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that are carried on a post surrounded by a reflector, and to a method of making such a lamp.
As is known, light output of an LED depends on its temperature. Temperature must be kept low to ensure efficient light production. Accordingly, it is beneficial to provide an LED lamp that includes plural LEDs with a heat sink for drawing heat away from the LEDs.
It is also desirable to provide a reflector for concentrating light from the plural LEDs. The LEDs may be mounted on a post so that the LEDs are surrounded by and spaced from the reflector. A circuit board provides the necessary electrical components and connections for operating the LEDs that are carried on the post.
However, the arrangement of the reflector, heat sink, circuit board, and post in an LED lamp with plural LEDs and the efficient assembly of these components have presented problems for designers of such lamps. One of the problems is how to efficiently connect the LEDs that are carried on top of the post to a circuit board when the circuit board is carried at a base of the post and when the heat sink and reflector are also carried at the base of the post. Heat must conducted away from the LEDs at the top of the post to the heat sink at the bottom of the post and electrical connections must be made from the circuit board at the bottom of the post to the LEDs at the top of the post, and the arrangement of the components must facilitate automated manufacture of the lamp.